Could a Kickstarter Campaign Help Start a New Series?

There's been some projects lately that have been funded by Kickstarter that have helped entice studios to produce them as well. The recent Veronica Mars movie comes to mind. So I had the thought that if the right producer (like Ronald D. Moore, for example) was willing to run a new Trek series, could a Kickstarter campaign help entice CBS to produce it as well? The startup costs for a new Star Trek series would be high but those could be offset by a Kickstarter campaign that might help CBS consider funding the project if their own investment was lower thanks to contributions by fans.

Kickstarter could also help lead to the season renewals for the series. If fans and viewers are happy with the series and ratings are strong enough, perhaps a Kickstarter campaign around the mid-season mark could help provide further incentive for CBS to renew for another season. And if fans are dissatisfied with the direction of the series and don't donate, they don't need to and let the series be cancelled.

I think they are looking for the right climate to launch such a series.

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Maybe it wouldn't have been canceled in the first place if it was aired in the right climate, instead of UPN.

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While UPN as a network sucked, I think that a high-quality series could've overcome the network's faults. Enterprise started with big ratings and quickly lost those as fans and viewers gave up on a show that played it safe for too long. Had the quality of late-season three been present in season one, maybe even season two, then the series could possibly have gone on longer despite the shoddy network it was on.

Well, UPN was targeted more at a more modern, urban audience. It wasn't exactly the best network for a science fiction show.

When Enterprise was on, I couldn't even watch it, because we didn't have local channels, just satellite. So I never even watched most Enterprise until a couple of years after it was over when pirated copies started to appear online.

However we were selected to participate in the Nielsen ratings the year it was to be canceled. Even though I literally couldn't watch the show, we made sure to give Enterprise the best rating.

CBS is in "talks" with any number of people, all the time, about another STAR TREK series idea that's brought to them. But that's their job, to talk to people about new, or other series ideas. Whilst I'm not a Studio Executive, I have to say that I've not been impressed with anything I've heard, so far, being discussed - and I doubt they are either. CBS got burned thanks to ENTERPRISE, with all of its promise and expense - and is understandably reluctant to come out with another STAR TREK series. If, instead, they were "on the fence" about the idea, then I could see a Kickstarter Campaign making any kind of a difference ...

CBS didn't really inherit Trek until after ENT got canceled. While Trek fans may be clamoring for a new Trek series, Trek is really just one of many properties that CBS owns. In a way, the success of the last two Trek movies by Paramount may have mitigated the need for a new Trek series to keep the brand afloat.

Additionally, the first-run syndicated drama market and UPN were the major factors for new Trek shows, things that CBS doesn't have to contend with.

CBS will not use Kickstarter to bring back Star Trek. But it is interesting to see the fan films using it. Renegades, Phase II, Continues, Horizon, and the best of them all, Axanar, all have used Kickstarter to raise money.

CBS didn't really inherit Trek until after ENT got canceled. While Trek fans may be clamoring for a new Trek series, Trek is really just one of many properties that CBS owns. In a way, the success of the last two Trek movies by Paramount may have mitigated the need for a new Trek series to keep the brand afloat.

Additionally, the first-run syndicated drama market and UPN were the major factors for new Trek shows, things that CBS doesn't have to contend with.

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My initial understanding was that CBS had somehow come into partnership with Paramount and purchased its Television Properties, thust "inheriting" STAR TREK, as you say. Then, someone "knowledgable" on these boards, I believe, informed me that CBS didn't "inherit" anything, that it had already owned it, or some junk. I don't even know, anymore ...

I just started watching the Phase II fan series today while sick at home, and I have to say the episode quality writing and production wise is so high (especially the newest episodes) that really, why do we need "official"? Official is just some people at CBS anyway, it's not like they're going to have Gene Roddenberry's work or David Gerrold/Harlan Ellison writing episodes. So their fanfic has a license, just fund the stuff that's done by the people who truly have a love for the show.

That said, a licensed trek kickstarted would generate millions in less than a few hours.

Question and I know I'll probably not going to get an answer but how much are the TV right for Star Trek?

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Pretty much what C.E. Evans said. Right now, Star Trek TV is printing money with people buying the DVD/Blu-ray sets on already produced episodes, and it's highly unlikely that CBS has any plans to sell new rights to anyone, which means that they're not even on the table. While the franchise is popular, it's rare that anyone can afford "not for sale."

Add to the fact that there have been a number of offers over the years from people with the clout to produce a TV show (Roberto Orci, Bryan Fuller, Michael Dorn, just to name a few), and CBS has said no every time.

So for now, they don't want to, and considering what they own, they can hold that position indefinitely.

Add to the fact that there have been a number of offers over the years from people with the clout to produce a TV show (Roberto Orci, Bryan Fuller, Michael Dorn, just to name a few), and CBS has said no every time.

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Well, Dorn I think has no clout (or not nearly enough). Fuller never actually made a pitch. And Orci's pitch was for an animated series, and was rejected on the basis that one successful movie didn't make a pattern that CBS was willing to bet on. He probably has the best chances of anybody who has shown interest of getting a series made though, and if it did happen it would be after a successful 3rd movie.

Add to the fact that there have been a number of offers over the years from people with the clout to produce a TV show (Roberto Orci, Bryan Fuller, Michael Dorn, just to name a few), and CBS has said no every time.

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Well, Dorn I think has no clout (or not nearly enough). Fuller never actually made a pitch. And Orci's pitch was for an animated series, and was rejected on the basis that one successful movie didn't make a pattern that CBS was willing to bet on. He probably has the best chances of anybody who has shown interest of getting a series made though, and if it did happen it would be after a successful 3rd movie.

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I'm hoping so. I love the movies, but I'd like to see a TV series again. Right now I have one show I watch on television, the rest is from Netflix and other sources. I'd like to get interested in primetime TV again.

CBS didn't really inherit Trek until after ENT got canceled. While Trek fans may be clamoring for a new Trek series, Trek is really just one of many properties that CBS owns. In a way, the success of the last two Trek movies by Paramount may have mitigated the need for a new Trek series to keep the brand afloat.

Additionally, the first-run syndicated drama market and UPN were the major factors for new Trek shows, things that CBS doesn't have to contend with.

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My initial understanding was that CBS had somehow come into partnership with Paramount and purchased its Television Properties, thust "inheriting" STAR TREK, as you say. Then, someone "knowledgable" on these boards, I believe, informed me that CBS didn't "inherit" anything, that it had already owned it, or some junk. I don't even know, anymore ...

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CBS and Viacom (which owned Paramount) were once under the same Viacom umbrella. Their mutual owner, Sumner Redstone, separated them in 2005, with each company taking about half of Paramount with them. In the split, Viacom kept the movie division, Paramount Pictures, while CBS got Paramount Television (which had the licensing rights to dozens of classic and new TV shows, including every Trek series). CBS dissolved Paramount Television around 2009 and folded Trek into its long list of TV properties.

Question and I know I'll probably not going to get an answer but how much are the TV right for Star Trek?

Click to expand...

Pretty much what C.E. Evans said. Right now, Star Trek TV is printing money with people buying the DVD/Blu-ray sets on already produced episodes, and it's highly unlikely that CBS has any plans to sell new rights to anyone, which means that they're not even on the table. While the franchise is popular, it's rare that anyone can afford "not for sale."

Add to the fact that there have been a number of offers over the years from people with the clout to produce a TV show (Roberto Orci, Bryan Fuller, Michael Dorn, just to name a few), and CBS has said no every time.

So for now, they don't want to, and considering what they own, they can hold that position indefinitely.

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This in a nutshell, IMO.

The defunct Paramount Television needed new Trek shows for syndication and later UPN; CBS doesn't, but they can still make money by licensing Trek out to Paramount and other companies...and all without having to sink millions into a new series, at least for the time being.